I Want More Time! Right Now!

WHEN we first moved into our house, we found the kitchen appliances were practically brand new. They were from the late sixties and we moved in about 1994, but the dishwasher and oven might have been used a dozen times.
Now I think I know why. The retired couple who lived here enjoyed working in the yard, the woodshop, doing crafts and reading: the house was stuffed with book club selections that mostly got sold at the estate sale before we moved in.
The retired couple didn't want to cook or wash dishes. They went out to restaurants and spent their time doing things that were much more fun. (The walls were hung with dozens of decoupaged pieces of wood. Somehow those sold too.)
Tonight, as I faced the choice of preparing dinner or stamping paper with all sorts of paint, I knew where I would rather be!
However, the Mister had worked all day too. I wanted to show you what he accomplished over the weekend. On Saturday, actually, he "lined" - trimmed - the bathroom windowsill with some of the copper he has. It's to match - in material, but not in texture - the copper panels that line the skylight over our as-yet-unused shower.
And TODAY I got "Royal Mail." Rosie sent her Library Card Project and it was so exciting to get it all the way from Leeds. The front and back were decorated. I love it! (The back has a film strip with figures of a man on it, in case you can't see it clearly.)
So now I have gotten nine cards and I don't know about the 10th. I know who has it but I hesitate to ask again because I know from reading their blog, they are a bit overwhelmed right now. I think I will wait and see for a few days and in the meantime prepare the "e-book" of the story and illustrated cards.
I've been having such fun stamping colors on cards and painting some pages in my journal. I have a class coming up May 16, and it's going to be an adventure and lots of fun to take a whole day to experiment with different techniques One Whole Saturday! I can't wait. Even if no one else is there, I'll be having fun - femminismo

Here's What We Did on Saturday and ... My Library Card Is DONE!

ON Saturday I went to Creative Circle. I've been too busy to share, but now I finally got the pictures sized and saved, so here we go.
I "taught" a class in Art Journaling, but - really - everyone there knew just as much as I did, or more.
I brought some of the books I made in the year I made one book a month, one day at a time, so everyone could see a little of the techniques I tried. We had one table set up for painting journal pages and another space for stamping and then seating so people could sit around and write in their books - or talk and visit, as some wanted to do. This is a neat group and everyone seemed real happy with what they were doing.
TurquoiZe is our "leader," since she makes sure Bodacious Beads is unlocked and ready for us to have our time together. Clarkie, the owner, is so very nice to offer her space every month. Very, very nice!
We painted pages, did some stamping and collage and the time went by much too quickly. Here are some of the great women who came to share the fun. TurquoiZe and Dawn are at right.
Alice's children's book, above left, is filled with sparkles and a token for a wish. Wouldn't that be great?
Sylvia's altered book page, with the lady who has a "map skirt," is looking good. She has a knack for collage and comes up with some of the greatest garage sale finds. I think she must have magic fingers that are all equipped with divining rods that find exquisite junk.
I love the picture of TurquoiZe with the paintbrush clenched in her mouth. (She may not, but I do.) She was so intent on that page, adding color and silver or white stamping. We didn't quite know what she was up to, but soon her "Harlequin Man" took shape. What a jolly sort of fellow he is, with his beard and wings. Fancy pants on this guy!
And here are a couple of my journal pages, without much journaling, but a little writing. Sumi ink drawing, foam stamp we made by heating the blue foam and pressing it onto embossed paper. This is really fun and I could probably do it all night long. It's fun to find different textures, heat the block and then press the block onto the surface you want to duplicate. Forget jewelry, fancy perfumes and luxurious limos - just give me blue foam blocks!
Linda was working away on her project with such dedication that I don't think she even saw me take this picture. In the background is the Bodacious Bead shop, which is full of wonderful sorts of things bead addicts absolutely must have.
AND I did tell you I FINISHED my Library Card Project, so now I must show it!
I finished it on Sunday, but two of my adorable granddaughters came to visit so I'm sure you understand I was busy. It's funny to have the 10th part of the story - THE END - come so soon, before the other parts, but it really doesn't matter. So here you go - femminismo

What's Happened to My Header?

DON'T know what's going on. Maybe it's the wind outside. Pretty ferocious, so perhaps it's to blame for taking away my header.
New software installed on my computer? Gypsies, fairies? Friday the 13th aftereffects?
Anyway, it's gone and I'm not sure how to put it back up. Christy? Are you there?
Maybe there's a Blogger problem I'm not aware of and everything will be fixed when the "person with all the answers" gets back into the virtual office on Monday.
Who knows?
I am working on gathering elements for a class on Art Journaling I have volunteered to do for our "no pressure" Creative Circle class that's held one Saturday evening a month.
This will be a fun project and I will show some of the past journal pages I have done and maybe reinvigorate myself in the process.
The picture above is of a page done earlier this month. Down below, with "linked brothers," is one I did today. I have been trying to clean up my craft room. Our objective is to turn it into a bedroom so people who want to visit will actually have a room to stay in. What a concept!
Well, I'd best be doing that instead of lingering here, inside the time sucking machine - femminismo

New Art Journal Page.

ACTUALLY, to be truthful, there's no journaling on this page ... yet.
It may happen. No promises, OK? But I did actually get busy and do some painting on the theme of Sainte Therese, the photocopied image in the guerrilla valentines I left around town.
Then I posted them on my other blog -- set up especially for the people who would come flocking -- and only one has so far. : (
However, instead of feeling sorry for myself, I decided to go ahead and do a journal page so anyone visiting there would know what the heck I was talking about.
Here is what I did with my image and the word "rendezvous." (Aren't those eyes just a little creepy?)
I was trying to keep the two places - blogs - separate, but if you want to go visit and leave a comment so others may feel less threatened by what I've done there, go ahead and click on "visit." And remember clicking on the pictures should enlarge them.
Well, I have a feeling "Lost" may be on and I'm still trying to make sense of that show. Talk at you later - femminismo

Touchstones for Me ... and Possibly You.

SOULJOURNEY, the Yahoo group I have joined, has a new prompt each week, but I am behind in what I've accomplished. Yikes!
I got a chance to sit down the other night and go through magazines looking for words or phrases - defining words and power images - that are what I would like to include in my life in the coming year(s). It is fortunate that I am working with a very large book because I found so many words and phrases that I could not bear to part with. I ended up with two pages full of words that mean something to me.
Notice a few maps and foreign phrases in there. Could that mean travel?
We were also asked to look for one word that resonated with us. I was stuck for a long time, but now I believe the word is "possibility." Yes, that is my word. Look for it starring on its very own art journal page soon.
Tonight was yoga, and I didn't believe I would be able to go. Not because I was fearful my shoes would be taken again. No, this time I was just too sad. I thought I might spend all my time crying. I can't really talk about what's making me sad. Not right now, anyway. But lo and behold, I knew the yoga would be the best thing for me and at the end of the practice I was feeling 110 percent better. Taking care of ourselves is always the hardest thing to do, isn't it?
Thank you everyone for your comments. Four things: Tammy, I miss you too, you sweet girl! My oldest granddaughter got engaged to be married! And Candace, I am so glad you got your scarf. And, Barb, I love my bag. Good night, sleep tight, don't let the bed bugs bite - femminismo
p.s. I also finished the cover on my November-December journal. Odd, isn't it? Not quite finished here.

Off On A New Tangent.

"MAIRA Kalman, Maira Kalman." That's all you'll hear from me for a while. My work colleague and friend, JoAnn, turned me on to her by showing me a book Kalman had written, "The Principles of Uncertainty." Filled with her gouache illustrations, (from photographs, I think) it inspired me to be on the lookout for people from everyday life I could draw and write about.
The first person was a woman in the supermarket - a small, "real," hometown market, not an upscale foodie paradise. It was just before Thanksgiving and the woman smiled at me uncertainly, almost shyly, as if she were out doing something she shouldn't. She stuck in my mind and I drew her into my art journal. Let's see if I can find her ... her she is above.
I missed a great opportunity a few weeks later. There was a man with long hair smoking in the same grocery store parking lot, leaning on the hood of a car. Boy do I regret not taking his picture!
So when I saw Michelle - I didn't know her name when I stopped her - I ran after her and boldly asked if I could take her picture. She was so gracious I almost couldn't stand it. What a joy! Here she is in a new journal I have begun that is solely dedicated to the people I meet throughout this year. Please note, I am not finished painting Michelle. And, as Kalman preaches, it is not the artistic ability, it is the doing. (I translate her philosophy roughly here.) If you want to read an interview with the artist herself, check out this blog.
Now I must get going on this day. I have cleaned our main bathroom, now that the dust has settled from the most recent renovation stage on the room next door (which is the small bathroom off the master bedroom). The floor had almost dropped out and there was dry rot in the walls. The Mister has been a busy bee, working through the knee pain he has after his November surgery. He's been going to rehab and exercising, but construction is rough, hard work for the healthiest knees. We have to shop for shower tile and Creative Circle is tonight with a mystery project scheduled. Cannot wait - femminismo

Artful Journaling - I Hope.

THERE are no words added yet, but here are today's pages, inspired by the SoulJournal Yahoo group. We were inspired to use lots of gesso and incorporate other things (which I have a lot of) to make a layered, deeper page.
I'm showing posts of this page since the first rule of blogging is Post. Post regularly. Post often.
I unearthed my carved lady face stamp I made and since I haven't taken her out for a spin lately, decided to do so today.
I used gesso, paper towel bits, dried leaves from several years ago, acrylic paint and gold glaze. I picked up the clear button and then found - in the button box - this bit of what was once attached to a button, I think. Looks like a green ship. Maybe the green lady will sail off on it when it get closer.
They appear to be stuck to the page for now, but I think I'll affix them with something more permanent soon.
I thought I had gotten away from the gold and orange and yellow of my October pages, but evidently not. Maybe this gray, foggy Oregon day needed a bit of sunshiny juice to it.
The last photo is of something the Mister brought into the house the other day. He has been shopping already and I haven't gotten him a thing! Must get busy.
Now for a bit of a poem (just a verse):

We are created from and with the world
To suffer with and from it day by day:
Whether we meet in a majestic world
Of solid measurements or a dream world
Of swans and gold, we are required to love
All homeless objects that require a world.
Our claim to own our bodies and our world
Is our catastrophe. What can we know
But panic and caprice until we know
Our dreadful appetite demands a world
Whose order, origin, and purpose will
Be fluent satisfaction of our will?
Drift, Autumn, drift; fall, colours, where you will:
Bald melancholia minces through the world. - from "Canzone" by W.H. Auden
- femminismo

Incredibly, Time Is Passing.

YES. Isn't it just weird, but time's flying through November. Just like it flew through October.
Thank goodness we only have to shop for food for Thanksgiving, and not presents for everyone too. That's (almost) what I like best about this holiday. Besides the pumpkin pie, anyway.
And I'm still at just over 25,000 words for NaNoWriMo. I shouldn't be blogging, I know. I should be churning out the words that are waiting for me to release them. And they are there, I know. Ah, well. We shall see.
Here you see a journal page, and I am most embarrassed that I don't know the name of the lovely lady in the picture. I printed it out because I wanted to draw her. This was a fairly quick sketch and, as usual, not in a "realistic" style, but in "my style." She's all "stamped on" too, but in fairness they got there first.
If she chances upon this post in the blogosphere, perhaps she will let me know. Or maybe you know her.
I wrote "Jiffany" with a bottle of acrylic paint, straight from the opening. I meant to write "Tiffany," since Audrey is there looking in the store's window, but it sounds like I've coined a new word: jiffany. That what you say to someone when you're window shopping at a jewelry store and they're ready to go: "I'll be with you in a jiffany." hahahahaha
Well, besides doing the NaNoWriMo thing I am working on a present for my granddaughter. And wouldn't you know it? It also involves words. So I really must go. Ta, ta - femminismo

Feeling Silly Posting This ... But Oh What the Heck.

YES, sure I'm feeling silly, but when I found this picture on my computer - I was looking for something else - it made me laugh. At Art in the Pearl over Labor Day weekend, I saw these in a downtown Portland store window.
Did you ever see such a thing? Remember, laughter can keep you healthy!
I have been telling you of my travels and adventures, but I sure haven't been posting much art lately. I found this picture of a journal page I didn't have the nerve to post, but suddenly I find I do have the nerve to show it to you. Prepare yourself for nudity. I was looking at (insert famous artist's name here)'s famous painting and decided to do my own interpretation of it. What I got wasn't quite what I expected, but it was fun.
Let's see ... what else has been going on? Work. Eating. Yoga. A little yard work. I made an apple crisp. That's about it. Trying to finish up a newsletter for Valley Art, so I've been writing.
I will leave you with this one shot, taken with a digital camera through the lens of a very old Ansco "Rediflex" camera. My pal, JoAnn, told me about this. She was first to do this and I was so impressed I had to get an old camera right away. I apologize if I'm repeating myself and you've heard about this before. Here's the picture and then I'm saying good night - femminismo
p.s. Oh, wait. I "fixed" this old clock photo in Photoshop and I want to remind you that time is running out on our candidates and state measures and local political races and the hour is close upon us when it will be time to vote. I hope you are registered and will vote on November 4! I know I will.

An Auspicious Day That Began Like Any Other.

LOTS of days start off in the usual, regular way. You open your eyes and sort of wonder where you are and what day it is. This morning I awoke - I was awake earlier at 4 a.m. and had fallen back asleep - and wasn't really ready to get up. That is usually the way with mornings. They come too dang early.
Then I remembered the tension-filled state of the world and the fact it is Friday again and the economic world was supposed to end last Monday (in my mind, that was a likelihood; it was nothing officially announced) and thought, "Oh, what the hey! Let's see if coffee doesn't make everything better."
Well, that and a hot shower sure did. Then I got to work and found that two people at our newspaper had lost their jobs. Uh, oh. Grim uncertainty again.
I even thought about the job I used to have before this one - the job working with secretive, manipulative liars. Hmm. Could I have stood that job until retirement? It was a pretty sure thing and at a good salary, too.
Nope, I thought. Decision made. Done deal. Not going back in time and driving myself nuts.
So it's onward and forward and hopefully upward. We're getting a taste of what our parents and grandparents dealt with and it might be a very, very good lesson.
I guess we'll see.
The sky picture above was what greeted me when I left the office building at 5 p.m. I do like looking up! The weekend weather in Oregon promises to be near 80 degrees. I could use some sun and warm weather.
This last picture is one from my journal. She just appeared from the paintbrush when it hit the page. Ready to go to a very nice party, she is.
And did you watch the debate? It's hard to understand why anyone would want to be president or hold any elected office sometimes, but thanks to those who go into it trying their best to solve our nation's problems - femminismo

Into The Nettle Patch ... and Out

OWIE, ouch, ouch, ouch! No longer can I brag of my prowess on the "balance beam" on the property. I took a fall off the four foot high log and landed in the nettle patch.
My arms and hands are still stinging.
I somehow twirled in space and landed on my back parallel to the log.
I landed on my right side - shoulder and back of my noggin colliding with the ground. The Mister heard my whoops as I tried to keep my balance. "Are you all right?" he yelled.
I was still taking inventory.
"I guess so," I said. I waited a while for my mind to catch up with my flight. Fear not. The camera still worked. That was most important right then. I didn't want to go under the log and I couldn't go over. I staggered to the path I'd made along the creek and then walked up to check in with him. He was working on a roof for the outhouse.
He didn't seem too concerned when I told him about the nettle patch. "Well, you made it up here by yourself, didn't you?" I couldn't deny that.
I know what you're thinking: He's cold hearted and not much of a gentleman. (And he looks so nice in his pictures.)
Well, he was right. I did seem to be able to walk and talk - both at the same time. So I guess I will live. We'll see how lively I am tomorrow jumping out of bed. (The fall happened today, Sunday.)
The wild sweet peas were blooming on our way down the road to the property on Saturday. They love the sunshine.
I found the pale leaf laying on the path above the bridge. Looks like it didn't get its share of nourishment and fell from the tree.
We set up camp to stay the night and had to put up the tent because it was "Oregon sprinkling." It stopped around 6 p.m. For dinner I wrapped up potatoes, carrots, onions and red snapper in foil and they cooked over the fire. Oh, sitting around the campfire eating that delicious stuff - with caramelized onions. Yum!
Didn't see any stars by 10 p.m. but it was time for bed. Sort of cool that evening. The flannel sleeping bag felt good.
The next morning, while the Mister started a fire, I went for a walk up at the sunny entrance to the property to look over the berry situation. I found only a few wild blackberries - which I like the best- but they're not quite ripe yet. There were lots of Himalayan berries coming into flower and they're sort of pretty blooms, aren't they?
When I got back to camp I mixed up some pancakes, adding vanilla to it like a woman at the grocery store told me she did. Ooh la la! These pancakes were delicioso! With the fried egg on top and a nice warm fire - and a cup of black coffee - I was in heaven.
The Mister is a good cook. He also wanted to make sure his hair looked OK. Guess he thinks he's a big blog star now that he's made the big time on mine.
I don't know how I'll keep him humble. Especially after you see the outhouse he's building. For now it must remain unseen, because there's no picture. But soon, I guarantee.
It was a busy weekend. Sometimes it seems there's too much work and not enough time to just do nothing.
The faster life goes, the faster we seem to go to make the time we have left go further.
I'm not sure that's the best way to do it, but that's how I seem to be dealing with the fleeting chances I have to do everything I want to do.
I feel as if I wasted so much time while I was young that I want the chance to get a whole lot of things done before I have to say adios.
I did work on art while I was up in the woods, if you can believe that! Here you go. Two painted journal pages - with no writing ... yet. The yellow leaf atop the ferns caught my eye on the way out. While the Mister locked the gate I took one last photo of our good time.
By the way, while we were sitting by the fire at lunch - before we left today - the Mister fell out of his folding chair. After my fall, and his lack of concern, I had to laugh. In fact, I laughed so hard I peed my pants. There! My first and last admission of such an occurrence! We have a lot of fun laughing together and today was no exception - femminismo

Can't leave the paint alone.

THIS MONTH I am doing a much smaller book - one of the books I made during the February book binding classes I took each Friday. Since the pages don't allow much room to do more than a small sketch or journaling, I've been missing pushing paint around.
Then I remembered I had never finished the cover on my August book, which is huge. I had visited Dawn Sellers' blog (that was on Monday) and she was doing cool things with glazing and layering matte gel and paint - and I have to admit I didn't read through all her instructions. I was just so excited I jumped up and went to my art table, took the large book, inserted newspaper to protect the pages and started dumping on thick matte gel and wiping it all over the paper with an old debit card. Then I added a little yellow paint, since August suggests yellow to me. (In Oregon, that's the month when summer really begins.)
I embedded a large tag, with a string hanging from it, and painted over it. Then I laid down a leaf skeleton from the tulip tree and painted over that (carefully) and ended up adding a piece of crumpled tin foil, too.



I stamped the cover with a star-shaped rubber stamp, did some writing ... just about everything but the kitchen sink.
The front cover took overnight to dry and last night, Tuesday, I painted the back cover. It was fun to get the gel and paint on thick and then drag a tool through it to make a pattern. I figure I can always put more goop on the outside over it if I don't like it. Perhaps I'll even check out Dawn's instructions and see if there's something even more interesting I can do.
I'm a slight bit concerned about reinforcing the spine of my "book" also, after the things I learned in the book binding class.
This August journal/art book is so large (12" x 15 1/2") because it's made from folded watercolor paper. Looking back a few months, it's amazing to see what I did and wonder if that was really me! I remember the enthusiasm I had experimenting with all sorts of new paints and techniques - cutting up fashion magazines and putting men's heads on women's bodies, and painting with melted wax. I really made some big messes.
Well, I'd better leave those excuses behind and try to get a little more radical with what I attempt inside the house, too.
It's getting late. Better be toddling off to bed soon. Cheers! - femminismo

Flutter books from Sumi paper.

On Friday I worked at the Accidental Bookmaker shop - taking the four Friday February classes in book binding.
We made a flutter book (here is the beginning of the project) and then constructed a "cradle" for book binding.
The white flutter book paper is Sumi paper with the rough side out. One book - the green one - was begun and finished in class. The purple book, which in the second photo looks blue through camera "technology," I finished last night. The bead, which is the same wonderful turquoise of the jasmine blossom tea packet, can be pulled up the ribbon to close the book securely.

The yellow journal page was painted yesterday, Saturday, too. The "flower lover" words appeared in a magazine and I thought how much I am missing the flowers in my garden. This spring I vow to throw seeds everywhere and harvest lots of pretty flowers come summer.
Yesterday I did something that has bothered me ever since: I found another woman's blog, saw a joke I didn't think was so funny, and left a comment. Ever since then I have wondered if I hurt her feelings, since I'm sure we all post things others might find less than interesting, relevant, "cute," etc. I guess I could find my way back through the labyrinth of blogs and remove the comment, but she's probably already seen it. What would you do? (I don't think I said anything rude, and I know I am hyper-sensitive to hurting another person's feelings.)
She also has one of those "mapping" widgets that note every person's location and when they visited. That sort of creeps me out to see my visit instantly appear. Well, I guess I'll leave it alone. If she wants to track me down, that's not too difficult since I left my "calling card."
I hope your Sunday is excellent and that someone, somewhere has sunshine. Ro? I'll bet you do in Australia! Today is the Mister's birthday and he is celebrating by doing nothing but whatever he wants. Right now he's playing the guitar. He is my best friend, too, so I'll go spend some time with him and neglect my artwork a little, just for today. - femminismo

Writing letters by hand.

Two recent articles in the newspaper inspired two things: a journal page and a letter. Handwritten letters are really very special and a treat to receive.
Where I grew up - a small town in the country with maybe 300 people - our postman was the most well received person in town, although first-of-the-month bills were probably not popular with our parents.
Whether it was a letter from an aunt or a pen pal, a birthday party invitation, the Whoopee Cushion we had saved our dimes and nickels to send away for, or that extra special love letter from that certain sailor in the U.S. Navy, the postman's small truck was listened for without our even realizing it.
So today I've jotted a short note to a friend who was written about in the newspaper, and I've addressed a 99th birthday card for my elementary school principal. I am not going to be unrealistic, but I hope I will at least send one letter, greeting card or postcard once a week for a year.

Maybe I'll even get some back. - femminismo

p.s. At right is a journal page with some of my paper towel "paper" and some good thoughts for us all.

Past Journal Pages